Home to around 6,000 people, the archipelago of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon is 2,650 miles and five hours’ flight time from Paris, but that doesn’t make it any less French. Sebastian Schmitz visits the two largest islands to understand the essential role aviation plays in this tiny outpost
Located off the Newfoundland coast in the Atlantic Ocean, the archipelago of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon consists of eight islands, of which just two are inhabited. It is one of several French overseas collectivities that include French Polynesia and the Caribbean islands of Saint Martin and Saint Barthélemy. Saint-Pierre, the archipelago’s largest town, has a population of around 5,500 and shares its name with the islandon which it is situated. It hosts the islands’ major hotels, schools, hospital and administrative buildings, although everything is tailored to the modest number of inhabitants, and the town is famous for its colourful wooden houses. While hosting a population of just 600, the island of Miquelon is more than eight times bigger than Saint-Pierre, which lies just 3.6 miles to the south.
For centuries, fishing has been and remains an important source of revenue for the islands, in part…
